'Really sad' - Brentford boss Keith Andrews makes Sheffield Wednesday admission and praises Owls youngsters
Brentford head coach Keith Andrews was very complimentary about Sheffield Wednesday’s youngsters after his side’s 2-0 win at Hillsborough.
Brentford head coach Keith Andrews admitted he finds it “really sad” to see the depths Sheffield Wednesday have fallen to after his side’s 2-0 win at Hillsborough in the FA Cup on Saturday afternoon.
The Bees progressed to the fourth round of the competition for the first time in four years with a routine win over a very youthful Owls side, getting the job done via goals either side of half-time from Keane Lewis-Potter and Mathias Jensen.
The Londoners, who approached the game with a strong starting XI, were dominant throughout and would have put a more handsome look on the scoreline had it not been for Wednesday goalkeepers Pierce Charles and later Logan Stretch, who was forced to come on for his debut in the second half after Charles picked up a shoulder injury.
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Wednesday chief Henrik Pedersen was forced to name a very youthful XI, so much so captain for the day Svante Ingelsson was the only starter over the age of 23.
“I've been in tough environments before as a coach and as a player in periods where things don't go very well, and you're fighting relegation battles,” Andrews told The Star. “But I don't think I've been involved in anything quite at this level with all the backdrop.
“I don't profess to know everything about everything that's going on, but I do have a general understanding of where things are at.
“And again, the history of the club, the history of this city, that I have a lot of respect for. I am a big traditionalist, so I do find it really sad to see a club of this size and history in the predicament that it's in.”
Andrews hails Wednesday youngsters
Praising the spirit and character Wednesday’s youngsters showed, refusing to throw the towel in, Andrews added: “We were pretty clear on what we needed to do in the second half because the spirit has been there; I've seen it in all the performances recently.
“Even when they got a goal down today, they're still putting their bodies on the line. They didn't want to concede any more than two.
“They're young boys as well, giving absolutely everything. The reality is the levels today for those young players, playing against some of the players that we have, which naturally are Premier League players and international players, it's a huge challenge for them to stay at that and compete at that level as they did throughout the afternoon.
“The spirit and the character and the resilience is still there, very, very evidently.”
Meanwhile, Andrews also confirmed he was invited by Owls boss Henrik Pedersen to join him for a post-match beer.
“I'm going to go and have a beer now with Henrik because he kindly invited us in before the game, which is a novelty for us,” added the Brentford chief. “So we'll definitely take him up on that.”